Apparatus for producing a dry fixed gas



NW3, 1936. v I "Fimum 7 2,059,269 v.

APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING A DRY FIXED GAS.

' Filed June 7, 1953' U GHSA d 2L 7 G/750Ll/VE dillIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIR I Frc ziirJjVoZazz Patented Nov. 3, 1936 2,059,269

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING A DRY FIXED GAS Frank J. Nolan, Bridgeport, Conn., assignor to Electra-Gas Corporation, Rochester, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application June 7, 1933, Serial No. 674,726

9 Claims. (01. 261-85) My invention relates to an apparatus for prodiscs. The cover I is provided with a gas outducing from liquid hydrocarbons, especially from let 36. The tank 4 may be filled at 38 and is the gasoline fractions, a dry fixed gas of the supplied with adrain tap 40. type disclosed in my pending application Serial The shaft 8 is connected to the shaft 42 of No. 674,235, filed June 3, 1933. the rotor of the motor B. At the other side of 5 According to the present invention, air is the motor the shaft 42 drives the pump C. This drawn over one or more rapidy rotating wicks pump is preferably of the constant pressure type, which are fed by capillary attraction from a for instance, a sliding vane pump. The pump source of liquid hydrocarbons. inlet is connected by a pipe 44 to the gas out- The object of this invention is to produce a let 36, and delivers the finished gas through out- 10 dry fixed gas which contains all the ingredients let 46 controlled by a valve 48.

of the liquid hydrocarbon used, which'gas is The operation of my device is as follows: The stable within the limits of normal atmospheric starting of the motor causes the pump to draw temperatures. air through the shaft 8 and radially outward A further object is to provide a simple and inbetween the discs over and through the wicks 15 expensive apparatus for accomplishing this result. 26. As the air passes over the Wicks it absorbs Further objects and advantages will appear the constituents of the gasoline which is present more fully from the following description when on the wicks in finely subdivided form, forming taken in conjunction with the accompanying a dry fixed gas of the type described in my ap drawing which forms a part thereof. plication referred to above. This gas is stable, 20

In the drawing: and contains no carbon monoxide. It has a high Fig. 1 is a side elevation of my apparatus. fuel value, up to 500 B. t. u. per cubic foot, and Fig. 2 is a cross section on the line 2-2 of can be made very cheaply. Even low grades of Fig. 1. gasoline will be completely absorbed by the air, Fig. 3 is a cross section on the line 3-3 of so that the less volatile constituents are not 25 Fig. 2. wasted.

The invention comprises a vaporizer A, a motor As the liquid hydrocarbon is absorbed, fur- B and a pump 0. The vaporizer consists of a ther fuel is fed to the upper ends of the wicks cylindrical casing 2 mounted above a liquid hyby capillary attraction. This feeding is enhanced drocarbon tank 4 and communicating therewith by the centrifugal force generated by the rota- 3 by a circular opening 6 of lessdiameter than tion. Furthermore, this centrifugal action tends the casing. A vertical shaftv 8 is rotatably to throw off the liquid from the wick and break mounted in the top or cover H) of the casing 2 it up into an easily absorbed condition. and its lower end is supported by a bearing l2 in As I have explained in my application above the tank 4. referred to, the passage of air over a series of 35 Mounted on the shaft 8 is a rotor comprising wicks which are fed by capillary attraction prean upper disc [4 and a lower disc l6 connected vents the air from becoming over-saturated and and held in spaced relation by bolts 18 or the depositing the less volatile constituents. Neverlike. Below and secured to the lower disc is a theless, the feed of a sufiicient quantity of liquid downwardly extending cylindrical casing 20 10- is assured. The present arrangement is some- 40 cated in and substantially filling the opening 6. what more compact, and the centrifugal action The casing 20 extends substantially to the botkeeps up the feed so that the finished gas, will tom of the tank 4 and its bottom'wall 22 is procontain a sufiicient proportion of hydrocarbons. vided with apertures 24 to permit liquid hydro- In addition, the fact that the pump and rotor carbon to rise in the casing 20. Wicks 26 are of the vaporizer are driven at the same speed 45 arranged With their IOWBT ends in t e cas ng 20. will increase the feed of liquid to the wicks as while their central portions extend radially outthe velocity of the air flow increases. ward between the discs [4 and I6. The upper By my invention, therefore, the air passes over ends of the wicks are secured near the outer a rapidly rotating wick, fed partly by capillary edges of the discs to the bolts I8 as by wire 21. action and partly by centrifugal force; the latter 50 The space between the outer edges of the discs increasing proportionately to increases in the may also be closed by a screen 28. volume of air passing over the wicks. Preferably,

The shaft 8 is provided with an internal air the size and quality of the wicks and the speed passage 3!] having inlet openings 32 above the of the rotor are so chosen that the amount of cover I!) and outlet openings 34 between the liquid exposed to any part of the air is no more 55 than that necessary to saturate such part of the air. This causes a proper feed of liquid, yet prevents the air from depositing heavier fractions which it may have absorbed in exchange for lighter ones.

While I have described herein one embodiment of my invention, I wish it to be understood that I do not intend to limit myself thereby except within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim: 1

1. In an apparatus for forming a dry fixed gas from liquid hydrocarbons, a wick mounted to turn about a vertical axis, means to rotate said Wick, a container for liquid hydrocarbon, said wick extending into said container, and means to draw air radially outward in contact with said wick at a velocity substantially directly proportional to the speed of rotation of said wick.

2. In an apparatus for forming a dry fixed gas from liquid hydrocarbons, a vertical shaft, means to rotate said shaft, a pair of vertically spaced discs mounted on said shaft, a container for liquid hydrocarbon below said discs, a plurality of wicks having their upper ends between and secured to said discs and their lower ends extending into said container, and means to draw air radially outward between said discs.

3. In an apparatus for forming a dry fixed gas from liquid hydrocarbons, a Vertical shaft, means to rotate said shaft, a pair of vertically spaced discs mounted on said shaft, a container for liquid hydrocarbon below said discs, a plurality of wicks having their upper ends between and secured to said discs and their lower ends extending into said container, said shaft having a passage therein and openings connected to said passage above and between said discs, and means to draw air past the outer edges of said discs.

4. In an apparatus for forming a dry fixed gas from liquid hydrocarbons, a casing, a vertical shaft extending through said casing, means to rotate said shaft, a pair of vertically spaced discs mounted on said shaft within said casing, a container for liquid hydrocarbon below said casing, said casing having an opening therein communicating with said container, a plurality of wicks having their upper ends between and secured to said discs and their lower ends extending through said opening into said container, and means to draw air radially outward between said discs.

5. In an apparatus for forming a dry fixed gas from liquid hydrocarbons, a casing, a vertical shaft extending through said casing, means to rotate said shaft, a pair of vertically spaced discs mounted on said shaft within said casing, a container for liquid hydrocarbon below said casing, said casing having an opening therein communicating with said container, a plurality of wicks having their upper ends between and secured to said discs and their lower ends extending through said opening into said container, means to admit air at a point adjacent said shaft between said discs, and means to draw off air from a point in said casing above said discs.

6. In an apparatus for forming a dry fixed gas from liquid hydrocarbons, a casing, a vertical shaft extending through said casing, means to rotate said shaft, a pair of vertically spaced discs mounted on said shaft within said casing, a container for liquid hydrocarbon below said casing, said casing having an opening therein communicating with said container, a plurality of wicks having their upper ends between and secured to said discs and their lower ends extending through said opening into said container, said shaft having a passage therein and openings connected to said passage above and between said discs, and means to draw off air from a point in said casing above said discs.

7. In an apparatus for forming a dry fixed gas from liquid hydrocarbons, a vertical shaft, a motor connected to said shaft to rotate the shaft, a pair of vertically spaced discs mounted ,on said shaft, a container for liquid hydrocarbon below said discs, a plurality of wicks having their upper ends between and secured to said discs and their lower ends extending into said container, and means driven by said motor to draw air radially outward between said discs.

8. In an apparatus for forming a dry fixed gas from liquid hydrocarbons, a casing, a vertical shaft extending through said casing, means to rotate said shaft, a pair of vertically spaced discs mounted on said shaft within said casing, a container for liquid hydrocarbon below said casing, said casing having an opening therein communicating with said container, the lower disc having a downward cylindrical extension thereon extending through said opening into said container, said cylindrical extension having openings therein, a plurality of wicks having their upper ends between and secured to said discs and their lower ends within said cylindrical extension, means to admit air at a point adjacent said shaft between said discs, and means to draw off air from a point in said casing above said discs.

9. In an apparatus for forming a dry fixed gas from liquid hydrocarbons, a casing, a vertical shaft extending through said casing, means to rotate said shaft, a pair of vertically spaced discs mounted on said shaft within said casing, a container for liquid hydrocarbon below said casing, said casing having an opening therein communicating with said container, the lower disc having a downward cylindrical extension thereon extending through said opening into said container, the bottom wall of said cylindrical extension having openings therein, a plurality of wicks having their lower ends within said cylindrical extension, their intermediate portions extending radially outwardly between said discs, and their outer ends arranged substantially vertically and secured to said discs at points adjacent the outer edges of the discs, means to admit air at a point adjacent said shaft between said discs, and means to draw off air from a point in said casing above said discs.

FRANK J. NOLAN. 

